A Drive of a Different Sort firs Windham Highway

WINDHAM - There is much more to working on the road crew in the town of Windham than shovels and wrenches.

Local highway superintendent Gary Thorington recently gave government leaders the lowdown on his department as part of his regular reporting.

He talked about fixing potholes and getting other everyday things done, as well as plowing snow, even while operating one-man down.

Thorington, over the summer and fall, advised town officials that the winter season could result in some complications due to the shortage of personnel, a shared, highway-world situation.

A couple of Eleventh Hour hirings helped fill the gap although adjustments had to be made for the first snowstorm, the week before Thanksgiving.

It melted quickly, as is often the case in November, but a subsequent smothering on Turkey Day was likewise a challenge.

“We have five of the six guys we need but two don’t have any experience [with the bigger trucks] so it’s a whole new ballgame,” Thorington said.

“Don’t get me wrong. We’re glad to have them and they do a good job but they’re rookies so they need to have some training.”

Thorington had to run three big rigs rather than four to mange the foot or so of white stuff that blanketed the mountains, noting, “we just have to let everybody find their spot, their role. No complaints. We’ll be fine.”

Gettin’ ‘er done goes with the territory but road men (and road women) are community members and good neighbors too.

Thorington, in a followup phone interview, noted that Windham is part of the  Greene County Superintendent of Highways Association.

The group meets monthly to share stories of being in the trenches, what works and what doesn’t work, how to spend time most efficiently and putting taxpayer dollars to the best use.

“We’re pretty active, something to be proud of, we think” Thorington said, noting providing shared services is always a key topic.

Every town and village is represented with county roads boss Scott Templeton stopping by too, keeping an open network of dialogue.

While mostly schmoozing about what you might expect, they have also started a Pet Supply Drive with collected items getting donated to the Columbia-Greene Humane Society.

“This is something other than nuts and bolts we can do,” Thorington said, explaining the idea came from town of New Baltimore highway head honcho Alan VanWormer.

VanWormer’s dog passed and wanting to pass the love along, the word was spread and it spread quickly, bringing in food, blankets, toys and unmentionables like kitty litter.

Windham made a bay in their highway garage available for drop-offs, and a mountaintop animal friends organization delivered a pickup truck packed with stuff, resulting in a very successful Drive.

New Baltimore came to the hills for a trailer load of stuff, leaving a peaceful, easy feeling behind. “Alan is all about doing good things,” Thorington said. 

“Thinking about all those pets [at the Humane Society] all alone, even though they are well taken care of, can get to you,” Thorington said.

A hope for the not-too-distant future is initiating a similar effort for humans. “Eventually, it’s something we’d like to do,” Thorington said.

“It’s one thing when pets don’t have a home. The thought of a kid going to bed without a meal is maybe something a lot of people don’t see but it’s going on. I wish it wasn’t.”

In other matters:

—Town officials were informed that $72,715 is being dispersed to Windham by the Greene County Treasurer’s Office for the second of two annual Mortgage Tax payments, channeled through the State.

That amount follows a payment of $52,979 handed down in the spring for a 2024 total of $125,694 and change.

It is less than half of the $274,513 the town got last year as the impacts of the pandemic-related downstate exodus of folks buying places in the mountains continued to keep banks busy and bountiful.

Government leaders are not whining, budgeting only $80,000 annually in Estimated Revenues, far-surpassing that total, money that will find some other useful financial purpose.